Mop Up on Mono Fire Begins

Fire Fighters now have the upper hand on the Mono fire burning near Mono Lake. Forest Service Officials say that fire crews started mop up operations today.

The Mono Fire grew to 1200 acres yesterday, burning through brush and scattered pines. Forest Officials reports thateven though the afternoon winds were strong, crews were able to hold and improve fire lines. The fire was listed at 100% contained at last word.

Highway 120 E had been closed since the fire started, but yesterday the situation had improved enough to allow traffic to the landfill. Today, the Incident Management Team re-opened Highway 120 East, Test Station Road, and the day use areas of South Tufa and Navy Beach.

Forest Officials say that if the fire activity picks up again, the roads and day use areas could be temporarily closed, or a pilot car could be used to lead vehicles traveling Highway 120.

Today there were 282 people assigned to the Mono Fire, down from a high of 302 people yesterday, including crews and personnel from the Forest Service, CalFire, and BLM. Volunteer fire departments and their equipment from Lee Vining, June Lake, Mammoth, Long Valley and Bishop have also helped the fire suppression effort.

All week long the cause of the fire remained listed as under investigation, but today Forest Officials confirmed that like many other fires that started Monday, the Mono Fire was also lightning caused.